Tajikistan’s push for greater hyena protection rejected at global wildlife summit

DUSHANBE, Tajikistan (MNTV) — Tajikistan’s bid to secure the highest level of international protection for the striped hyena was turned down at the global wildlife summit in Samarkand, where delegates emphasized that habitat loss and herder conflicts — not trade — pose the greatest threat to the species.

At the 20th Conference of the Parties (CoP20) to the CITES Convention, running from Nov. 24 to Dec. 5, Tajikistan proposed a full international trade ban on the hyena to strengthen its conservation status. The CITES Secretariat rejected the proposal, noting that the species’ decline in Central Asia is driven primarily by shrinking habitats and increased human-wildlife encounters.

The conference, the world’s largest forum on endangered species protection, has gathered about 3,000 delegates from 185 countries to review global conservation rules and introduce new safeguards for wildlife.

Tajikistan, which only recently confirmed the striped hyena’s presence in its southern regions after decades of presumed extinction, highlighted the need for greater protection during a side event titled “Striped Hyena at Risk,” co-hosted with Uzbekistan and Germany’s NABU. Despite the push, experts underscored that climate pressures and land degradation remain the species’ biggest threats.

Central Asian conservation efforts featured prominently at the summit. Programs under the Vanishing Treasures initiative continue to protect snow leopards and Bukhara deer in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, focusing on reducing herder-leopard conflict and curbing poaching.

In Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, the CAMCA project is working to rebuild Bukhara deer populations by restoring riparian forests and improving water sources.

Delegates also reviewed new evidence on the critically rare Central Asian (Turkestan) leopard, with fresh camera-trap footage confirming sightings in the Pamiro-Alai mountains. The subspecies, once nearly wiped out by poaching, is listed in Tajikistan’s Red Book and remains the focus of international recovery programs.

Despite its limited economic resources, Tajikistan reaffirmed its commitment to global conservation efforts. Under the newly approved 2026–2028 contribution scale, the country will pay $195 annually — just 0.003 percent of the total — while retaining full voting rights.

Officials acknowledged that the nation must still update its wildlife laws to meet CITES standards, particularly in monitoring illegal trade.

Central Asian states concluded the summit by signing the Samarkand Declaration and the 2026–2032 Action Plan, pledging closer cooperation to combat wildlife trafficking and protect flagship species including the snow leopard and saiga antelope.